File:Bulletin (1941) (20420059892).jpg

Title: Bulletin
Identifier: bulletin2219411943illi (find matches)
Year: 1918 (1910s)
Authors: Illinois. Natural History Survey Division
Subjects: Natural history; Natural history
Publisher: Urbana, State of Illinois, Dept. of Registration and Education, Natural History Survey Division
Contributing Library: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

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September, 1943 Brown & Yeager: Survey of Fur Resource 499 Drying or curing is highly important in preparing raw furs for the market. A cool, airy, dry room or attic is the best type of drying place. Muskrats require only two or three days to dry sufficiently for shipping; foxes may require a week or more. Raw furs should never be dried in the sun, before a fire or stove, or treated with salt or other curing preparations. Trappers operating on a large scale sometimes market their catch unskinned. This is convenient and allows more time for trapping. The catch of the average trapper in Illinois, however, does not war- rant such practice. Prompt skinning is necessary since animals left to freeze and thaw quickly deteriorate, thereby greatly reducing fur quality. Too much emphasis cannot be placed on the need for proper handling of furs. Dealers and large fur companies have emphasized the need for care in skinning, stretching and fleshing, and have pro- moted such care by awarding daily and weekly cash prizes for the best handled pelts of all important species. Most large companies provide detailed handling in- structions, free for the asking. Very little use is now made of the skinned carcasses of fur animals, although efforts are being made to develop markets for Illinois muskrat meat. Such develop- ment would provide annually about 1,000,000 pounds of food now almost en- tirely wasted. Fox farmers in northern Illinois find limited use for skinned ani- mals in the preparation of feed. 1 here is a slight demand, especially in southern Illinois, for opossum and raccoon meat at low prices. Most of the carcasses are fed
Text Appearing After Image:
Fig. 33.—An early season catch of well-handled muskrat skins from The freshly skinned pelts have been stretched and are being dried on wire Vermilion frames. County.

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